Subterra Heart

Chapter 43: Connor Rocha

By the time they reached the steps to the University Library, both Connor and Marina were a bit out of breath. They had opted to bypass trying to alert Central to just how dangerous the current bloodrot situation was. With the lockdown in Flores Greens and the three mines, every sub-city in Heart was already on extremely high alert by now. Connor didn't know how much use their Dweller story would be. At best, it'd put all of Heart into an immediate lockdown, but that was only if Parliament believed them. The sub-city wasn't likely to take anonymous tips anymore either, so Connor's very illegal meddling with Tess's shae band would come to light right away too. 

And then there was the matter of Matteo Rocha's research. If the city went into a full lockdown right now, there'd be no more chances to search for it. Not that either of them really hoped to find the research. This was just an interlude while they waited for the chips to fall. Connor knew that Marina was only here because of that tiny spark of hope that she'd find her sister.

The steps leading up to the Library were just as crowded as the rest of Heart Central. Connor lumbered up them, glancing sideways at Marina. She wore a small frown, and her mouth was fixed in a straight line.

There was a station for them to scan their shae bands just beyond the wide-open entrance doors. Marina scanned in without a second thought. Connor did so as well out of habit, only pausing to grimace as an afterthought. Hopefully, whatever Manny had done to Tess's shae band would still hold up. He shook his head, shrugging off his worry. If anything happened, he'd deal with it later.

The inside of the Library was well lit. Bright, colorful patches of light painted all corners of the main floor. Connor looked up, and his eyes traveled over an additional six levels of balconies before landing on a ceiling of intricately designed stained glass. Lights were hidden behind it, and it told the story of how the Library first came to be. Founder Avery Gatesholder had been the one to document and archive much of Heart's original technology when the city was first abandoned by other worlds after the original emergence of bloodrot. Without his work, even something as simple as a radio could have been lost to time. Today, there were still a few scattered Gatesholder families across Heart, and that name was still synonymous with librarians, historians, and educators.

Connor looked back down and followed Marina to a lift on the far end of the main floor. Earlier, she had told him that she wanted to start looking for Matteo Rocha's research on the top floor and work their way down. That was fine by him. At least it was a plan. A few others trailed into the lift after them. One man selected the third floor while a young girl selected the second. Marina had already hit the button to take them all the way up to the top.

"I thought there were supposed to be ten levels," muttered Conner after everyone had gotten off the lift except for him and Marina. There was a momentary pressure against his feet as the lift started up again, heading for the top floor.

"The other three are basement levels," said Marina. "They're typically just used for archives or other storage purposes and aren't open to the public."

The lift doors slid open, and the pair stepped out onto the top floor. Private datalog cubicles were scattered all across the floor. Connor poked his head in an empty one. It was a cozy space with dark wood paneling and pink cushions. Half of the cubical was taken up with the datalog and extra desk space, and there was a sliding door for privacy. He stepped back out and looked around again. The colorful light from the stained-glass ceiling was even more vivid up here. Connor couldn't tell what color the carpet was. It could have been yellow, pale blue, pink, or green. He glanced over at Marina. The glass that she stood under was a large section of red and yellow glass birds, and her face looked rosy.

"You like it up here, don't you?" he asked her. Marina raised an eyebrow, and then strode off further into the floor, following a path along the railing that looked all the way down to the first floor. This was a quiet, calming place, but as Connor looked around, he realized that this would have been a terrible hiding place for Dr. Rocha's notes. This was a study space, and even though the cubicles were private, they would have been used by countless people over the years. There weren't any permanent hiding spots up here. No one in their right mind would have hidden bloodrot research on this floor. Tess wouldn't have come this way. Connor hurried off after Marina.